Rote - EP1

Rote - EP1
Daniel Avery and Volte-Face's affinity for each other (if not outright friendship) was made clear as early as January of this year, when the latter artist reworked "Platform Zero" from 2013's Drone Logic. Seeing as Volte-Face's first officially released production shared space with the likes of Rødhåd and Silent Servant, it stands to reason that an extra connection may have been there from the start. Sure enough, EP1 confirms suspicions, with the two Londoners joining forces as Rote. To their credit, the duo don't seem set on mimicking either Avery's crossover acid-techno or Casper Clark's greyscale Charlatan EP for their debut release. Instead, the two originals on EP1 dig into a common ground of nimble warehouse drums and thick, intoxicating atmospheres.

What may come as a surprise to fans of either producer is how much color appears in "Rote 1" and "Rote 2." The latter is especially generous with it, fading heavenly synth pads into its smokey terrain as an overt play at euphoric catharsis. And it works—the standout is like peak-era Orbital trying their hand at Berghain techno. "Rote 1" isn't so transportive, but it does well with tracky intentions. As the percussive churn tumbles straight through the mist (this record's closest thing to an Avery signifier), it picks up echoing organ blips and rat-a-tat hi-hats until just about the end of eight minutes. Use "Rote 1" as a transition towards showier fare and its momentum will surely payoff.

DJ Nobu and Svreca remix "Rote 1" and "Rote 2" respectively, both of which raise the tempo and claustrophobia to peak levels. The Japanese artist's production is a tourniquet-tight sequence of synth blips, acid lines and incessant drum machines on endless loop, while Svreca ditches the beautiful melody of "Rote 2" for something spooky and grim. Neither remix bests Rote's originals, but they nonetheless provide more extreme versions of the duo's shrewd techno.